Sport
March 14 2005
Page 39
sport@gairrhydd.com
YACHTING CLUB STILL AFLOAT AFTER FUNDRAISING EFFORTS By Will Carson Yatching Correspondent CARDIFF UNIVERSITY yachting team’s dreams of entering the 2005 Student Yachting National Championships have been realised after the Athletic Union contributed to the campaign. The money handed over by the AU has taken the total funds up to the required £2650 needed to compete, saving the yachting team’s campaign from the brink of collapse. The team will now be able to travel to Southampton for the event – held between March 20 and 24 – where they aim to improve on last year’s position of 11th out of over 30 boats. As the result of a huge campaign drive over the past few months, the team have secured sponsorship from Associated British Ports – the company which runs Cardiff ports – as well as two Penarth chandleries, Wigmore and Wright and Land and Leisure Marine Scene. But the team have not just relied on companies to donate money. Over the weekend of February 26, they could be found in Sainsbury’s on Newport Road, where they packed customers’ bags and raised over £600 in proceeds. Yachting team captain Nick Simmons said that the team has the AU to thank for providing the extra money needed to compete: "Huge thanks go to the Athletic Union for giving their support to our campaign. Without it we would have struggled to find the funds. I would also like to thank all of those who have kindly donated to our cause; you have given our yachting team a chance to make Cardiff University one of the best yachting universities in the country. Finally, I must thank the team members for their unfaltering dedication."
Engin lead the way RIDING HIGH: Accountancy’s Tom Wilkinson escapes an Engin lunge PHOTO: Adam Gasson
Engin A 1 - 0 Accountancy: Engin A cement their place at the top of the IMG tree By Rowan Belojica IMG Correspondent ENGIN MAINTAINED their grip at the top of the IMG Premiership with a vital win that leaves rivals Accountancy struggling to reach a play-off position. A tense and scrappy game was decided by a Huw Phillips effort from close range. The goal came from a long throw by Craig Price, which was fitting since both teams had looked most dangerous from set pieces throughout the game. The first half was a pretty close contest, with both team’s midfielders finding it difficult to play on an uneven surface, and as a result, a lot of long balls were played. Mark Bate went close early on for Accountancy with an overhead kick that bounced off the crossbar
and Engin ‘keeper Julian Fortuna tipped over an acrobatic scissors-kick attempt by Thom Airs. Accountancy Player Ra tings:
Dan Nichols 8 Lawrence Beech 7 John Stanton 7 Andy Whitworth 8 Mark Bate 7 Chris Holland 6 Rhys Beak 7 Gavin Brown 7 Thom Airs 7 Tom Wilkinson 6 Dan Hall 7
Engin threatened largely from long throws and corners, with the height advantage of Price and Luke Oliver causing plenty of nervous moments in
Magnifi-Trent 8s
: Engin A Player Ratings 7 na Julian Fortu Noel Douglas 8 Fernando Sucre 7 Paul Welch 9 Sam Tilley 8 Steve Ollier 7 Colin Williams 8 Huw Phillips 7 Luke Oliver 8 Criag Price 7 Dave Williams 7 the Accountancy defence, and from one such situation Ollier should have scored at the end of the first half. Engin stepped up a gear in the second half with Phillips and Colin Williams starting to overrun the opposition. The smaller Accountancy defence were beaten in the air plenty of times
and this led to a couple of good chances. Steve Ollier missed a golden opportunity from a rebound and Williams shot wide after a bout of head tennis in the Accountancy area. With time running out, Oliver flicked on a long throw for Phillips to stab the ball home. Accountancy piled on the pressure in the final minutes but the Engin defence, marshalled by the impressive Paul Welch, stood firm. Engin manager Oliver praised ‘a great effort from all the boys’ and his team’s ‘bounce-back-ability’ after an even first half that Accountancy may have shaded. Accountancy captain Mark Bate thought his team were unlucky to lose a close contest, and believed his side’s chances of IMG glory have all but ended.
U N I ROW I N G C R E W S E N J OY S U C C E S S I N BU S A E V E N T By Hannah Pole Rowing Correspondent
CARDIFF UNIVERSITY rowing club have secured the university’s first BUSA point of the year after two Cardiff crews claimed gold medals in the Novice category at BUSA Head of the River in Nottingham. The women’s eight, who have been training day and night since September, battled through the choppy Trent water and strong wind to set a new course record, beating University College, London, by six seconds. The women’s four also took gold by over a minute, with three of its crew having already completed the five-kilometre course in the eight,
just minutes before. The crews included Nikki Earl and Laura Utting who only started rowing eight weeks ago. Both senior men’s crews faced stiff competition from the likes of Exeter, Durham, Leeds and Oxford Brookes, but still ranked within the top 10 in their categories. The rowing club president Sam Nicholson says it will help boost the university’s image: "Our success is important when you think that Cardiff University rowers are the only club to represent Wales at BUSA and other rowing events across the country. "By attending more races and showing that Cardiff is a contender, we are building a reputation and the university could be one to beat in a
few years." The BUSA success comes only months after the club’s boat ‘Charlie Brown’ accidentally slid over a weir last October. Despite this, Cardiff ’s rowers have worked hard to put the university on the leaderboard with success at Bristol and gold at Wytcliffe last month. The club have been raising money for new boats and equipment, with a commendable performance from the novice men who tackled a 10-mile sponsored fun run in skirts and pigtails. Cardiff look set to turn more heads with the arrival of a brand new boat later this month, which is promised to be finished in bright pink.
INCH PERFECT: Engin’s defence proved solid all game PHOTO: Adam Gasson